Newspapers reported that although they could report on John Peelle’s stories, a person had to hear them directly from John to properly appreciate them.  He told many of the same stories over and over.  Yet, it seemed the people of Wayne County, Indiana never grew tired of hearing them. 

Old Settlers Organization

Organizing

The Old Settler’s Organization held an organizing meeting on July 21, 1855.  John Peelle, son of Passco and Tabitha (Dunigan) Peelle, was not only a founding member, but was also elected to serve as one of the two vice-presidents.

On September 7, 1855, they met at the Temperance Hall in Richmond.  Four rules were adopted:

• Meetings would start with a prayer.
• Old settlers would share stories about how things were in the olden days, how things had changed, interesting incidences, etc.
• They were to make each other sociable and agreeable.
• A book would be obtained to record the names of old settlers, their age, and when they came to the area.

The Program

After the business was complete, a program was held.  The auditor brought records from the county clerks office which showed the growth in the county based on the very small amount of paper required for tax records in 1819 compared to 350 large pages that were needed for the same task in the most recent accounting.

The auditor also presented records that showed that the Board of County Commissioners fixed rates for taverns in those early days.  Prices were fixed for meals, lodging, whisky, beer, brandy, and wine.  By 1855, this was not in effect.

Following the information shared by the auditor, some of the men began sharing their stories.  It was on this day that John told his story to the old settlers for the first time.  However, it would be far from the last time as he was a highly requested speaker and told his story over and over for years to come.  In his later years, he would begin, “I have so often told you the same old story, that you know it by heart.”

Old North “Carliner”

His story would usually start with his birth on March 27, 1791 near (David) Beard’s Hatters Shop in Wayne County, Old North Carolina or “Carliner,” as he would say.  He told of the early days before the cotton gin was common.  Everything with cotton had to be done by hand.  He was required to pick seeds from the cotton.  He admitted that sometimes he burnt some of the cotton to cut down on the number of seeds that needed to be picked out.

Indiana Here We Come

When he was a young man, John became restless and went on an adventure to Indiana Territory, arriving in August 1813.  He worked near Richmond for only a few days and then worked for another man for $10 per month.  John had only a tin of milk and a similar amount of mush to eat.  He claimed, “He had often got up from his meals, oh! So hungry, and with tearsi n his eyes.”  It made him long for North Carolina, where people had two-part homes.  One part where they lived and slept and another where they cooked and ate.  He eventually returned to North Carolina. 

The Silver Dollar

On March 6, 1815, he married Penina “Penny” Pate.  John paid the minister, who married Penina and him, with a silver dollar that he claimed was once owned by John Wesley.  Now, how someone who grew up in the Society of Friends (Quakers) would have come to have a coin once owned by John Wesley, a Methodist leader who died prior to John’s birth, is unknown.  However, I am sure John had a story about it.

At the Old Settler’s picnics, he would often pull out a silver dollar (or English shilling, as some report) that he said was a mate to the one that he had paid when he married the prettiest woman in “North Caroliner.”  Even when she was in her seventies, he stated that he had never seen a prettier one – ever.

His story did not end there.  He went on to explain why he had kept the coin.  He said that at the time of his marriage that witches were very bad in the Carolinas.  If a man had no money, they would eat him.  Thus, he kept the silver dollar so that he always had money on him.  Now, never mind that in his story about the early days in Indiana, he says that he arrived in the territory without any money.  Details, details, details . . .

Moving West

On March 6, 1815, he married Penina “Penny” Pate in South Carolina.  Three days after John and Penina married, they piled their belongings into a two-horse wagon, said, “Good-bye” to their friends and family, and left for Indiana. 

John and Penina arrived in Indiana in October.  They had been on the road for seven months.  Their journey had taken them through the Appalachian Mountains, across streams and rivers, and through wilderness.

They stopped where Richmond, Indiana stands.  They found John Smith selling goods in a small building on the corner of Front St. and Main St.  Although Main St. still exists, I have not yet identified this specific location.

Life In Indiana

John and Penina settled in Randolph County, Indiana just to the north of Wayne County.  They cleared the land and made a home.  It was here that their first child, a son, was born.

John and Penina had grown up in the Society of Friends (Quaker) faith.  However, after the Methodist Episcopal Church formed in the area, they became early members.  It was the “old religion” as the pioneers would later say.  They thought “old religion” was better than “new religion.”  One factor seemed to be that in the days of few settlers clearing the wilderness to create farms everyone for miles around was considered a neighbor and friend that could be counted on.

Hard Times

Those early days in Indiana were not easy.  He claimed he arrived in Indiana with no money.  Now, he may have meant that he had no significant money.  In any case, “he traded his wagon for a cow and some sheep.”  As he told it, “Dogs killed his sheep, his horse died,” and the cow killed itself by drinking syrup.

In those early days, John would make money by killing wolves.  The county would pay a small amount for each wolf scalp that he brought in.  Despite this, he said that he was not a skilled hunter.  Still, on one occasion, he claimed to have killed two wild geese with one shot.

John’s story of hardship in the old days continued, “You know the plow made of a forked stick; the cotton rope traces; my tanning of leather or pretending to for the purpose of making my wife’s shoes, which hurt her feet to this day.  You know I have told you before that after I came to this state, I often got up from the table hungry.  I sighed with tears in my eyes for my mother’s milk house in North Carolina.”  He went on to say that he thought he had “seen as hard times as the next man.”

Things Are Looking Up

John kept a positive outlook on life.  He stated, “We soon raised plenty of corn and squashes and pumpkins on which we fared sumptuously.  We used to hand around a basket of turnips in place of apples.  I remember once at a neighbor’s house I did not scrape the turnip as close as the good lady of the house thought I ought to; so she scraped it again and ate it herself!”

Wayne County

John and Penina stayed in Randolph County two years before moving to Wayne County.  Their new property was approximately two miles north of where New Garden was laid out in 1818.  The name of New Garden was changed to Newport in 1834.  Today the town is called Fountain City with the last name change occurring in 1878.  Here they again cleared the land to create a farm.  Their last 11 of 12 children were born in this home.

Around 1854 or 1855, John and Penina made a move again.  This time they moved to Centerville, the county seat of Wayne County.

The Old Settlers Picnics

Living in Centerville was convenient for anyone involved in Old Settlers.  Although some meetings were held in Richmond, many of the picnics over the years were held at the Centerville Fair Grounds or in nearby groves.

By 1875, the 20^th year of the organization, the Old Settlers Picnics had grown tremendously.  The crowd was estimated at 4000 people, a bit over four times the population of the town.  It drew people from the surrounding areas and even some old settlers who had moved far away returned for the annual event.

Events of the Day

Over the years the event had settled into a general pattern.  The picnics generally opened with a prayer sometime in the mid to late morning.  Often music followed and possibly a speech or two would be given to complete the morning.

Dinner (noon meal) was a time to eat the food they carried in while enjoying their surroundings and  conversing with new and old friends and neighbors.

After dinner, they would tend to the business of determining officers and people for planning next year’s event.  Typically, that was followed by  speeches by old settlers and the displaying of old items.  When known, the history, usage, or story about items was also explained.  Occasionally, special guests would also speak.

Music was also inter-weaved into the event with both bands and singing.  The event ended with the playing and/or singing of “Yankee Doodle.”

By now, the regulars like John Peelle, and their stories were well known to most of the members of the crowd.  John was known to many as Uncle John.  However, he referred to himself simply as “Old Peelle.” 

Besides the stories previously mentioned, he spoke of wearing leather pants, nettle shirts, and going completely without breeches wearing instead a gown that tied close at the neck.  Apparently, he also had some interesting adventures serving as constable.  However, two stories seem to stick out as favorites . . .

Judge Peelle

At each reunion, John would have to mention his nephew Judge William Adams Peelle, who was the son of his brother William (my great-great-great grandfather).  In 1820, John had help lead William and his family on their journey from North Carolina to Indiana.  His nephew was an infant at the time the family made the journey.

John would say that “he (William Adams Peelle) was as bad a child as I ever knew.  He cried nearly all the way from North Carolina, for which I often wanted to thrash him.”  John’s brother William explained to John that young William was crying because he had colic.

John also told about William’s adventure in North Carolina.  As a young man, William had gone to North Carolina to see family.  While there he met a young lady and took her to church the following Sunday.  According to The Richmond Independent, he “attracted the attention of the congregation a great deal more than the sermon did, and so William got up and walked out.  But the congregation followed him, and William sat down at the foot of a large pine tree, while the folks eyed his pegged shoes, the greatest curiosity they had ever seen.  William sat at the foot of the tree for awhile, and when he attempted to get up to go home with the girl he brought, he found that the turpentine and tar had run down and stuck him fast!  The people had to cut him loose with their knives.”

John would go on to say that young William had now become “quite a man.”    And, that he was.   William Adams Peelle was a teacher, lawyer, judge, and had served as Indiana Secretary of State. 

The Pantaloons

On one occasion, John started to wrap up his talk and leave the stand without telling the full story of the pantaloons.  And, the audience quickly reminded him that without the story of the pantaloons that he was not done.  Apparently, no Old Settler’s picnic would be complete without it.  So famous were John’s pantaloons that a newspaper article about a gathering, which had nothing to do with John Peelle, mentioned this famous story.  Likewise, one newspaper reporter even believed that it was worthwhile to come to the event just to hear the story of the pantaloons one more time.   

As the story goes, at each event John claimed to be wearing the “identical pantaloons” that he had swapped for soon after he came to Indiana Territory.  The pantaloons were snowy white cotton dimity with stripes and steel buttons.  He said that he had gone to a log-rolling contest and had decided to swap pants with Thomas Woodard, another young man in attendance.  Why they exchanged trousers, I do not know.

He went on to explain that they went to the nearby New Garden Meeting House (Quaker), which was a log cabin at the time, to exchange pantaloons.  The Richmond Independent reported that “he said it was the only time he ever saw two gentlemen in such airy a costume inside a church.”  John was quick to point out that no meeting was in progress and that the two men were the only ones inside during the exchange.

John said that when he got the pantaloons that they were tight as skin.  Still, years later he was wearing them.  One day, Penina let out the secret that she had removed the waistband and made other adjustments as John had become a bit thicker around the middle over the years.  I really wondered if this had been a repetitive process and if she had also had to patch the pantaloons.

In 1874, he indicated that he had owned them for 61 years, which would have meant that he got them when he traveled to the area prior to his marriage.  He went on to indicate that he didn’t actually know the true age of the pants, as he didn’t know how old they were when he obtained them. He wondered if there were others that had “survived the wear and tear of time” as well as his.

To emphasize his story and make sure everyone could see his pantaloons, he would often slap his leg.  He was known to take off his jacket and vest for a better view as they were somewhat like overalls with the buttons for suspenders between the shoulder blades.  When he was 86 years of age, he took it a step further and climbed up on a table so that everyone could get a better look.

The End of The Stories

An Aging Man

John appeared to have aged gracefully.  On August 15, 1872, the Cambridge City Tribune described John as “aged 83 years and as spry as any boy of 50 or 60.” (Note: John would have only been 81 in 1872.)

Still, John described himself as “a little, poor, worn-out feller.”  The Richmond Daily Independent disagreed saying, “he is a well preserved, bright old gentleman, straight as a cadet, and spry as a cricket genial and pleasant, as an aged Christian ought to be.”

Proving how spry he was, John celebrated his 86^th birthday by walking from his home at Centerville to Richmond, Indiana, a distance of approximately 6 miles.  He arrived in Richmond in time to have breakfast with his nephew Judge William A. Peelle.  He returned home that evening.  The Richmond Independent Telegram reported he was “feeling as good as a North Carolina bridegroom.”  The Cambridge City Tribune said that he was “straight in body and morals” and that was why he had lived so long. 

The Last Speech

1878 brought John’s last opportunity to tell his stories at the Old Settler’s Picnic.  As usual, the crowd laughed and cheered as the 87-year-old entertained them.  He would only live another few months.

He died April 20, 1879, less than a month after he turned 88.  In their later years, John and Penina had returned to the Society of Friends.  Thus, his death is recorded in their records.

In John’s will dated approximately one year before his death he showed his unwavering affection for his wife by writing “my beloved wife Penina who has been my partner in life.”  Calling her his partner in life is very unusual.  It was very touching and special given the year.

After John’s death, Penina lived alone for several years before a daughter helped her out.   She died in 1892 at age 96, but had lived long enough  to see the birth of her great-great-great granddaughter.